If it doesn't taste good, why eat it?

walnuts

I have a dear friend named Roxanne. Those who know her well call her Rocky. Rocky is a giving and loving person, always there to listen to a friend, offer advice, lend her opinion. Rocky also happens to be famous for her cookies, and I mean that. She’s been asked to make them for parties at a salon, for people’s backyard shindigs, she’s made them for co-workers. She willingly shares her recipe and I’ve used it over and over. In fact I have a family member who swears that Rocky cookies helped her survive through a rough patch of menopause. My weight-lifting friend asks me to make them as her cheat after competitions. I’ve made them for constipated children who don’t get enough fiber in their diet, and for adults after surgery. I make them for myself as a snack. Unlike conventional cookies, they’re packed with healthy fats and fruits, nuts, and energy-supplying seeds. No butter, no brown sugar, no white sugar- you get my drift.

This cookie is hearty. It can be made with every ingredient in the list, or only a few of them. You can play with combinations for flavor such as pumpkin and walnut, or chocolate and cherries, or sunflower and raisin. Personally, I love to have a little bit of dark chocolate, lots of different fruits (prune, fig, raisin, cranberry), some wheat berries, a mixture of flours (barley and whole wheat)- a little bit of everything.

The recipe may confuse some as it calls for a handful of this and that ingredient. It means that, literally. The dough should not be terribly stiff when complete, but if it’s too runny just add a bit more flour to the mix.

2 cups old fashioned oats

1 cup steel cut oats

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour (or oat or barley flour)

¾ teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon cinnamon (can also add a dash of cloves and/or nutmeg)

Sprinkle of sea salt

Handful of bittersweet chocolate chunks

Handful of raisins

Handful of dried cranberries

Handful of walnuts

Handful of wheat germ

Handful of flax seed meal

Handful of seeds if you like them (sunflower, pepitas, flax, sesame, etc.)

Are you a fan of the “morning glory” muffin? They are the breakfast muffin with a little bit of everything in them- carrots, raisins, apple butter, wheat germ, nuts. Well this cookie is similar to that. Packed with fiber, servings of fruit and vegetable, whole grains, and warm spices this cookie has a lot going for it health-wise. And it’s tasty too!

Ingredients:

1 cup raw, un-salted walnuts

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

2 carrots, grated

1 apple, grated

1 very ripe banana, peeled and mashed

1/4 cup apple juice

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350°F

Line your baking sheet with parchment paper

Combine the walnuts, oats and raisins in a food processor and pulse until ground

Transfer to a bowl and stir in flour, baking powder, cinnamon and ginger

Add carrots, apples, banana and apple juice and mix until combined

Drop by tablespoons one inch apart on the baking sheet, making about 24 cookies

Press down on each cookie with the back of a fork to flatten them a bit (peanut butter cookie-style)

A stand-up carrot cake recipe is always a good thing to have in one’s repertoire, in my opinion. This recipe is stand-up. It’s flavorful without being over-done. It’s moist without being heavy or greasy. It’s loaded with fruits and, therefore, fiber (which must mean that it’s healthy-right?). And to top it off, it gets frosted with goat cheese. Yum!

What I will also point out is that this recipe is easier on the tongue than it is on the eyes. The cupcake is not necessarily what I would call gorgeous, but it is damn tasty. It holds its shape well, but the frosting on top is definitely what makes it look more appealing.